A Tale of Christmas Circumstance
by SableUndedicated
Summary: A tale for Christmas, concerning children, romance, danger, and magic of a purely seasonal variety. - AU, Standard Disclaimer  SessKag
1. The Reindeer

**AN:** I'm a little late for a Christmas serial I know, but I intend to finish this _multi-chapter_ story by tomorrow night at the latest. I'll be up all night anyway, mourning the lack of magic in my own Christmas, so I may as make a little magic of my own for all of you guys. I hope you all enjoy. Much love, merry Christmas (and just like always, the sentiment stands no matter what you celebrate, or if you do at all.)

Keep a look out for more chapters. I'll be trying to update regularly all night.

Love to all of you,

Sable

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The Reindeer

The tree was beautiful. Magnificent, really. Its presence overwhelmed the hotel's lobby in the best way possible, suffusing every nook and cranny of the gigantic room with warmth and merriment. The twinkling lights cast out any lingering shadow, the shining red and golden ornaments called to the heart of every patron and employee who saw it.

The size of the tree alone was enough to inspire awe. The lobby's ceiling was open and vaulted, extending up to the third floor where it was decorated with a mural of traditional Japanese artwork depicting the old creation myths. The tree's star, a lovely abstract creation of clear white quartz, was level with the top rail of the second floor balcony. Any guests staying on the second floor could look directly out of their door and see the wonderful star balanced atop the tree.

Considering the number of Europeans and Americans that Tokyo's White Dog Hotel hosted over the winter, it had been a brilliant idea to import the Western traditions. Besides crafting a feeling of home for the foreigners, the decorations had drawn in even larger numbers of nationals. Westernization was becoming a beloved trend among the rich and famous. Some socialites even left Japan entirely to celebrate the winter holidays. Now, with a respected hotspot like the White Dog supporting the fad, the popularity of both the hotel and the overseas traditions would billow.

Kagome Higurashi tipped her hat to this intelligent maneuver as she stood as the very base of the great tree, examining the minute details of the thing.

Each bauble was immaculate, flawlessly similar to all those around it. There was nothing so homey or intimate about the tree as a homemade ornament, a few presents underneath, or any single touch of individual personality. As magnificent as it was, Kagome could find only a generic, symmetrical sort of pleasantness about the perfectly tied bows, the meticulously placed balls, and the immaculately polished spirals.

And so it came as a great surprise when she saw, tucked away into the fake plastic needles where not every eye would catch it, a clumsy reindeer made of pipe cleaners, felt, and, apparently, a great deal of Elmer's glue. It was placed right around knee-height, innocuous, innocent, and entirely out of place.

Bemused, Kagome knelt by the tree, tugging her black pencil skirt along with her so that it would allow the movement without revealing anything too intimate. Balancing precariously on her wine-red, microsuede stilettos, the curious young woman reached out to pull the handmade craft more clearly into view.

It was clear that the little reindeer had been made by a child's hand. White bubbles of glue around the corners of the ears, eyes, and antlers spoke of inexact exuberance whilst the enormous smile (a thick piece of string glued to the brown pom pom ball face) told of unrestrained eagerness.

"Now who could have made you?" she wondered allowed, ignorant of the curious stares she was receiving from passersby. Careful not to yank the string from its branch, Kagome turned the ornament around and examined the plain body of the reindeer. To her surprise, she found not the fumbling attempts of a child, but the precise knots and wraps of an adult. The pipe cleaner body, she surmised, had been fashioned by an adult whilst the head and face of the reindeer had been put together by a child.

A smile graced Kagome's face, causing her blue-grey eyes to soften and warm. As she placed the reindeer back in its original position, she tried to imagine the circumstances of the child who had hung it there.

Would they be a guest's child? Someone important, who secured permission for their son or daughter to place their craft on the tree? Or perhaps it would be an employee's doing, one of those who had access to the tree…

Her train of thought was suddenly cut short by a curt cough from beside and above her.

Startled, she jerked her head up and was surprised to find a well-dressed man towering over her. He stared down at her impassively, a single pale brow arched elegantly above its fellow. The effect was devastating on his handsome face.

"Um…" Kagome, still crouching on the floor, could not take her eyes away from him.

"If you are quite finished?" prodded the man, his voice soft and uninflected. A slim, pale hand dropped to hover in front of her nose, held in offering.

"Y-yes," Kagome said, quickly slipping her hand into his. The grasp he had on her was firm when he pulled her up, the hand itself cool and dry. Kagome was surprised by the grace his touch seemed to loan her, for with his help she rose without a single wobble or falter. When she was up, he did not let go of her hand. She stood carefully poised, one foot slightly in front of the other, less than a foot away from the stranger, meeting his entrancing gaze over their clasped hands.

"May I inquire as to your interest in the tree?" he asked.

She hesitated, his words not fully reaching her until his grip on her hand tightened slightly. His voice had been gentle music to her ears, an enchantment she had been hard pressed to ignore.

"I- well… that," she said, forcing herself to step away from him, releasing his hand and pointing to the happy reindeer whose happy brown face stuck out from the green, red, and gold surrounding it. She glanced back at him as he leaned closer to examine the object, noticing for the first time that the pale silvery hair she had only barely noticed wasn't grey, but instead a fine platinum blond. She wondered briefly if he was a foreigner. "It was so strange, next to all this splendor, that I just had to give it a closer look," she explained, tearing her eyes away from the man and refocusing them on the reindeer. Nostalgia and sentiment swept her again as she stared at it, and the smile she had earlier worn blossomed anew across her red lips.

"It's lovely, isn't it? Not at all in the same grand way as the rest of the tree, but don't you think it loans a certain amount of intimacy, nevertheless?" she asked, not daring to look at her impromptu companion again. He was silent, and she allowed her mouth to continue. "For all of its meticulous, carefully planned out beauty, this tree is impersonal, it's meaning a bit hollow. It was designed that way, so as to be able to appeal to whoever looked at it, regardless of their investment in what it stands for. But here's this little craft, made by someone who loved it enough to believe that it should hang right up with all the splendor and sparkle of this tree. Somehow, it makes all the difference: that little show of genuine caring."

When she finally did glance at the man again, a warm blush spread over her cheeks to heat her ears. The bland impassivity in his gaze had been replaced by a warm shadow of amusement. His thin lips twitched minutely in a manner that could almost have been a smile.

Kagome grinned sheepishly. "I'm sorry to blather," she apologized, extending her small hand out in front of her. The handshake was an interesting mannerism that Kagome had adopted with gusto, relishing in the familiarity and immediate modicum of intimacy it bestowed on its participants. "I'm Kagome Higurashi," she informed him as he took her hand, giving it a gentle shake before bowing ever so slightly over it. Kagome smiled at the show of compromise between the old ways and the new, and returned the half bow.

"It is my pleasure, Higurashi-san," he said, releasing her hand without any show of reluctance of eagerness.

She held her tongue for a moment, expecting to receive a name form the stranger, but he was reticent. When she was just about to push the boundaries of etiquette and ask for his name, he spoke up again.

"The reindeer was made by the little girl who lives in room 3984, which encompasses half of the 58th floor."

Kagome's eyebrows lifted. "How do you…?"

"If you'll excuse me, Higurashi-san," he interrupted, turning swiftly on his heel without any further adieu. Kagome watched him walk swiftly across the enormous lobby, its crowds moving almost instinctively out of his way, and disappear into an elevator that was just closing its doors. The last she saw of him was the swing of the braided end of his long, unusually colored hair. Restlessly adjusting the fit of her stark white blouse, Kagome Higurashi shook her head, clearing her mind of the lingering traces of the mysterious stranger's strange affect on her, and continued on her way to the information desk, resuming her earlier mission of contacting and locating a certain friend of hers who was a permanent resident of the White Dog.

She couldn't help but send a single acutely curious glance back at the clinically cheerful tree and its tiny, genuinely spirited interloper.

-end chapter-


	2. The Boy

**AN****: **Thank you Vamp Winter and NaraTaree for the reviews!

-Sabs

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The Boy

The smell of gingerbread cookies permeated the hallway of the 52nd floor. When Kagome stepped out of the empty elevator, the potency of the scent halted her in her steps. Her eyes fell closed and a peaceful smile slid over her face. For a moment, she was five again, helping her father make the batches of Christmas cookies that he would share with their entire neighborhood.

Her father had been something of a scatterbrained adventurer, exhibiting far more courage and spontaneity than forethought and sensibility. His migratory journey around the world had found him stranded in Japan when he met Kagome's mother and as he told it, there had been no question of ever leaving again after that. In hindsight, Kagome suspected that he may have simply forgotten that he was actually from America.

In any case, he had managed to assimilate into Japanese culture almost flawlessly. So strongly did he want to belong, in fact, that instead of changing his wife's name when they married, he took hers and became Jonah Higurashi, the blue eyed and blonde haired foreigner who became keeper of a traditional Shinto shrine.

His love of Christmas, however, was never quite set aside, and he had gone on celebrating it right up until the winter he died.

Sometimes Kagome felt that the only link she had to him was this joyful season.

A shout from down the hall jolted her from her memories and she slid her eyes open slowly. A young boy, his red hair pulled back into a sloppy ponytail and his green eyes alight with happiness, was rushing down the hallway. He waved his arms at her as he called her name, and Kagome giggled at the oversized oven mitts that engulfed his hands.

"Shippo!" she was able to call in greeting before the exuberant child bounded straight into her arms.

"Kagome!" he squealed, wrapping his narrow arms around her neck and his wiry legs around her waist. "I'm so glad you're here! When did you get in? Are you staying for Christmas? Kaede said you didn't say. Hey, do you want a cookie?"

All of this was delivered so rapidly that Kagome thought her head would spin just from hearing it. She laughed and hugged the boy back just as tightly as he was hugging her.

"From the beginning: Yesterday, yes, and absolutely!" she answered, carrying the eight year old down the hallway.

The door of the room he had come from was propped open, as it often was. From inside came gentle seasonal music in English, but Kagome knew that French, German, and Japanese songs would also play throughout the day. The room was also the source of the delectable smell of gingerbread that had struck Kagome so strongly in the hall.

The reason for it was overwhelmingly obvious when Kagome carried her giggling, chattering burden through the door.

Trays of cookies and gingerbread cake were laid on every flat surface of the large room, all at various stages of cooling. The room was warm and brightly lit, true sunlight streaming in from its large, unobscured windows.

From the doorway, Kagome could see half of the in-use kitchen from which rattles, clangs, and off-key humming could be heard

"Kaede!" she and Shippo called at once.

"I'm here," called Kagome.

"Kagome's here!" added Shippo gleefully.

Kagome rounded the kitchen doorway and was enveloped in the leathery arms of Shippo's nurse, Kaede Oda. Shippo, sandwiched between the two of them, laughed and clung all the tighter to Kagome's neck.

"Shippo," croaked Kaede, "You have to release Kagome so that she may sit and eat and tell you of all her travels." The craggy-faced old woman smiled fondly, but Shippo obeyed her command without hesitation. He dropped from Kagome's arms like a monkey and, grabbing hold of her wrist, tugged her over to the kitchen table.

"Look at this batch, Kagome, I iced them myself!" he said, pointing to the tray of cookies cut to look like foxes. Some of them were iced carefully, artistically, as a real fox was marked- with a white dipped tail and a white underside. Far more, however, were iced however the child had fancied. Some had zigzags, some had polka dots, and some were completely coated in the traditional white powdered sugar icing.

Kagome grinned as her small friend pulled out a chair for her. Sitting and pulling him into her lap, she planted a light kiss on his cheek.

"Tell me, Shippo," she said, "did you ice those pure white ones just for me?"

Shippo laughed and leaned forward to grab two of the cookies, both thoroughly painted with icing. "Just for _us,_" he corrected, handing her one and shoving the over into his own mouth.

In no time at all, Kaede had Kagome busy packing individual tins of cookies and pieces of cake. While they worked, Kagome and Shippo traded tales of their daily lives, each filling the other in on all they missed.

Before they knew it, the afternoon had slipped away. When Kaede sent Shippo to bed, he went with minimal fuss and was especially compliant after Kagome promised to visit again the next day.

When they were alone, Kaede and Kagome sat amidst their stacks of cookie tins and empty trays, munching on the few cookies that come out too deformed to give to others.

"He's so happy here," Kagome commented, gazing fondly at a fox cookie whose tail had accidentally been broken off.

Kaede nodded. "He has made progress in leaps and bounds. His weekly calls from his uncle no longer so negatively affect him. I believe he has begun to heal."

Kagome sighed in relief. "I'm so glad. Kids like him don't deserve to grow up bitter and in pain."

Kaede glanced at her knowingly. "You understand him and his circumstances."

Kagome sighed. "Nobody ever understands, but it helps if someone can get close."

Kaede nodded, sticking a gingerbread man's arm between her thin, wrinkled lips. The two of them sat in companionable silence for a long while, staring out the window at the darkening sky over Tokyo. From one side of the hotel, the view was that of the ocean. From their other side, it was a view of the city.

Lights burned brightly in the city's many buildings, casting a glow that made it see as if Tokyo had swallowed up the sun and was holding her hostage until morning came again. Not a single star could be seen.

"Kaede, do you know of a little girl who lives in room 3984?" Kagome asked, her mind suddenly back on the strange conversation she'd had in the lobby earlier that morning.

Kaede looked at her, her single eye widened in surprise. "You mean Rin-chan? How did you meet her?"

Kagome shook her head. "I didn't," she said, fixing her eyes on the still very much awake city that sprawled out before them. Beginning with the little homemade reindeer, Kagome told the whole story to her elderly friend, choosing to omit only the strange, unsettling breathlessness the stranger had inspired in her.

Kaede listened in silence and made an interested noise when Kagome was through.

"Well, it's no wonder he interrupted your perusal of the ornament," she finally said. "It is his daughter's."

Kagome frowned. "Who is he?" she asked.

"Sesshoumaru Taisho."

Kagome blinked, not understanding. The tone of voice Kaede had used made it sound as if the name itself should have explained everything. She shook her head and the older woman grinned.

"Congratulations, dear. Today you met the owner of White Dog Hotels and Resorts."

The smile that had grown unconsciously on Kagome's face in response to Kaede's grin dropped immediately, replaced by a look of dawning horror.

Kaede chuckled as Kagome groaned and dropped her head into her hands. "I babbled like an idiot in front of this place's _owner_?"

Kaede shrugged. "I don't know about babbling…"

Kagome just rubbed her forehead. "This probably isn't going to reflect well on Naraku-san in our meeting tomorrow."

"You never know, child."

Suddenly, something occurred to Kagome that made her blood run unreasonably cold. She lifted her head from her hands and stared at Kaede. The older woman thought that the very much younger one didn't realize the intensity of her gaze, and an idea planted itself in her head like the seed of a weed that promised to be persistent and hardy.

"What is it?"

"What about Rin-chan's mother?"

Kaede only barely kept her jaw from popping open as that pesky seed of an idea quickly took root.

"I- I wouldn't know," she said, keeping her voice carefully neutral.

Kagome's face fell, her shoulders slumped, and she couldn't keep the disappointment out of her voice when she muttered, "Oh…"

Kaede's mouth twitched as she casually continued. "I don't think Taisho-san himself knows, after all. He adopted Rin-chan right off the streets. He's been raising her all by himself ever since, the brave boy that he is."

Kaede pretended that she didn't notice the way Kagome's eyes lit up after that.

-end chapter-


	3. The Boss

**AN:** Thanks for the review, Vamp Winter! I may even have one more chapter tonight before I finally give up and go to bed. :)

-Sabs

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The Boss

Kagome woke so suddenly that she wasn't sure at first that she really was awake.

Her eyes snapped open and her heart jumped chaotically around her chest cavity. For a moment she didn't realize the tenseness of her body or the way her fists clutched at her sheet. Presently, her breathing slowed and her heart calmed, and she found the presence of mind to wonder what had scared her so badly in the first place.

The longer she tried to remember it, the more the dream slipped away. There was snow, she thought, lots of snow on the streets, and she was walking in the snow. There was a touch on her shoulder, and a pair of eyes like disks of citrine, and she wasn't scared, but she was very, very warm, and- and…

With a sigh, Kagome sat up and tried to figure out how many hours she had actually managed to sleep after all the tossing and turning she'd done last night.

The blackout curtains blocked the sun so well that she couldn't tell the time until she found her cellular phone, which had somehow been shoved deep into the crack between the mattress and the headboard while she slept.

She blinked blearily at the glowing numbers on her phone's face, sighing when she finally comprehended the difference between 5:37 and 53:7.

She flopped back onto her pillow, tossing the phone into the chair that sat near her bed. She ran one slim hand through her hair, tangling her fingers in the chaotic mass of wavy strands.

The minutes drifted by as Kagome gave up trying to remember the dream, and turned her mind instead to the day ahead of her. She was finally beginning to bore herself to sleep with the minute details of her schedule when the ring of the hotel's landline phone startled her right out of bed. She jumped, taking half of her blankets with her and landed hard on her hands and knees on the floor beside her bed.

Gasping for breath, her heart pounding yet again, she scrambled for the phone.

"Hello?" she said into the receiver, breathing hard.

"Good morning, Higurashi-san. This is your six o'clock wake-up call, as you requested," came the cool, collected voice.

Kagome stumbled to the desk chair, clutching the phone to her face. "What? I never ordered… Oh. Him."

"Higurashi-san? Are you alright?" asked the woman on the other end of the line, her impassive voice taking on a hint of concern

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for the call," said Kagome, her voice deadly dark.

The woman assured her that it was "Our please, Higurashi-san" and promptly disconnected the call, apparently eager not to have to deal with anyone who had a tone like that in their voice.

Kagome hung up the phone before her grip could become so tight that it cracked the plastic.

"Naraku," she growled, her eyes narrowed. With a huff, she stood and stomped to the bathroom.

Moving at an almost inhuman speed, the young woman showered, dressed, and fixed her make-up in record time. Black hair perfectly curled, grey eyes perfectly lined, thick grey sweater dress perfectly fitted, and soft lips perfectly reddened she was just pulling on a pair of satiny black heels when a knock sounded on her door.

The three rapid, chipper taps told Kagome exactly who it was. Abandoning the second pump, she limped over to the door and flung it open, snarling at the man who stood there grinning at her.

"Naraku," she hissed for the second time that hour.

"Now, now, Kagome," crooned the man, raking amused eyes up and down her frame. The appreciation there was gratifying and disturbing at once. Gratifying because it was his fault that she had to look so wretchedly perfect all the time, and disturbing because there was a hint of an ugly leer on his normally elegant face. "It got you up in time, didn't it?"

Kagome rolled her eyes and stomped gracelessly away from the door, collapsing back into the desk chair to pull on the second shoe.

Her employer, Onigumo Naraku, chuckled as he strode into the room, swinging the door shut behind him. He cast a quick glance around the room, his lip rising in contempt.

"What in the world happened in here, Kagome-kun?" he asked, surveying the dismantled state of the room. Shirts, skirts, shoes, and hats were thrown haphazardly around the room. It looked as if a miniature tornado had swept through the room, originating in one of Kagome's three suitcases.

"This is what happens when you wake me up before I'm ready, Naraku-_kun_," she mocked.

The man rolled his eyes and nudged a carelessly tossed bra with the tip of his designer shoe. "Red satin, Kagome? I had you pegged as a pink lace kind of girl," he countered, watching gleefully as her ears turned crimson.

"Shut it, you," she groused, standing and going to cut him off from the rest of her room, putting a hand on his chest and pushing him back towards the door. "I could have slept 'til noon."

"I don't tolerate sloth," he told her, reaching out to tuck one of those perfect curls behind her ear.

"I've been keeping up with you for three years, now. There's no room for sloth in that. I think I've earned the right to sleep in whenever I can," she told him dryly, pushing him back towards the door. "I asked you to please not bother me until you _need_ me."

Naraku held his hands up defensively, fending off her attempts to force him physically out of the room. "I was under the impression that you would be visiting friends and family while I wasn't bothering you, not sleeping your life away," he informed her primly.

Kagome just rolled her eyes. "Listen, could you just leave me –"

He interrupted swiftly, laying one hard-angled hand against her mouth. "As it just so happens, I _do_ need you," he informed her, catching her gaze and smiling.

Her boss's eyes were well known in certain, easy-to-intimidate circles. A strange shade of brown, so russet as to be almost red, they seemed to glow in certain lights almost as if he weren't human. They had a hypnotic, beguiling quality that he always played to the very best advantage.

However, Kagome had had plenty of time to get used to those eyes, and she'd recently discovered a certain gaze that affected her so, so much more than Naraku's ever had. She just glared.

"I've a message that needs delivering in person. I'm sending you and Kouga."

Kagome's eyes shot up. "What would I need the muscle for?"

Naraku looked away and slipped a hand into his jacket. When he pulled it out, a plain white envelope came along. "Bad neighborhood," he told her bluntly.

"I'll take a cab, don't send Kouga." She held out a hand for the envelope, but he wasn't done searching his pockets.

"Bad people, Higurashi," he snapped, and she knew he meant business by the glare he shot her. "Kouga goes." He pulled out a sheet of paper scribbled all over with writing. "These are your instructions, follow them to the letter. After you're done, you've got the day to yourself, but you had better be there at three for the meeting."

"Yes, sir," she said resignedly, sweeping her eyes over the instructions sheet.

"Kouga's waiting for you in the lobby. Be there within the next ten minutes."

With that he was gone, sweeping out of her room and slamming the door behind him. Kagome sighed, no longer shocked by the bipolar nature of her employer, and ran to grab her coat and purse, knowing that even when he didn't say 'or else,' he absolutely meant it.

The instruction sheet said to take the car Kouga would call down to an old building in a somewhat underdeveloped district. Apparently, Naraku had been in a brilliant mood when he wrote her instructions, for he directed her to 'put on her game face' and 'make sure to give them that stink eye glare.' Deliver the envelope, he wrote. Don't look into it, don't get the paper dirty, and don't let anybody else touch it except the person it's for.

The clandestine dramatics, as far as she was concerned, were a bit juvenile, but she knew her boss liked to make a point by sending his closest employee, a woman, right into his enemies and partners lairs to deliver his messages. His point, of course, was that no one would dare lay a hand on her or hinder her mission in any way, being that she was, of course, an extension of _his_ power. In the pond he swam, Onigumo Naraku was the biggest fish, and he fully expected to be treated like it.

Somehow, the hullabaloo he caused with his antics drove the idea of a meeting with the White Dog's intriguing owner right out of her mind.

-end chapter-


	4. The Cookie Tin

**AN: **Now for a few hours of pathetically, thoroughly enjoyable slumber.

To clear a few things up: Don't worry, Naraku's not the nice guy I've made him out to be. Everybody's human. Sesshoumaru comes back in the next chapter. You meet Rin one or two chapters after that. This story is practically writing itself. And Shippo is French.

Just thought you ought to know.

Yours faithfully and absolutely exhaustedly (I get wordy when I'm tired),

Sable

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The Cookie Tin

Kagome leaned heavily against the elevator wall, using the hand that wasn't hanging on to the rail to rub the back of her neck.

The job of Naraku's had taken longer than she'd expected it to, and she'd had to spend the long hours in the company of the detestable Kouga Hashimoto. Not only did she get a blister from having to climb the four flights of stairs in the old building she'd been sent to, but her arms were also tired from having to keep pushing that bore of a bodyguard off of her person.

The people she'd been delivering the envelope to had been the type of shady characters that she so fervently wished Naraku would have no dealings with. Unfortunately, such a call was not hers to make. She did as she was told and was well paid for it. Putting up with the sort of people Naraku had made her learn to intimidate was nothing compared to organizing all the social outings he committed to.

Still, this trip had been particularly bad. Naraku's business was slipping further and further into the questionable side of the law, and Kagome was starting to get the impression that it was time for her to bail while she still could.

When he wasn't grabbing at her and pushing for her to accept his advances, Kouga had actually managed to let slip a few useful warnings. He was getting out of Naraku's employment at the start of next year, he'd told her, and he'd advise her to do the same. He'd spoiled the almost gallant gesture by trying to wrap her in his arms and assure her that 'his woman' would always be able to rely on him. She'd bashed her head against his chin for that one.

So now her feet hurt, her arms felt leaden, and she was sporting a roaring headache. Quitting her job was sounding better and better every moment.

The elevator doors slid open and Kagome was greeted with the lingering aroma of gingerbread. She felt some of the tension drain out of her body as she breathed the scent in with all the grateful greediness of a woman who had been drowning just moments before.

She walked slowly down the hall, not even bothering to conceal the limp caused by the painful rub of her shoe again the blister on her heel. When she arrived at Kaede and Shippo's door, she slammed the flat of her palm against it just the once.

Reliable as always, Shippo was there immediately.

"Kagome!" was his customarily cheerful cry. However, the boy was far shrewder than he often let on, and he did not launch himself at her as he usually would have.

"You don't look so good," he told her bluntly, grabbing her arm and tugging her into his home.

She laughed humorlessly, dropping her purse on the small entryway table. "You sure know how to flatter the ladies, Shippo…"

"Are you limping?" he asked when he looked over his shoulder, his voice jumping to a girlish squeal.

"Indeed I am," she told him, falling onto the long couch in the living area.

Shippo was immediately hovering over her feet, pulling at her pumps until he had gotten them off. Kagome grunted when he knocked against the deep blister and he began sprouting apologies.

The unbroken stream of _sorrys_ coming from the boy did not slow him down as he darted about the rooms, bringing her a damp washcloth, a few Tylenol, a glass of water, and a first aid kit.

Kagome hushed him softly, thanking him for the supplies as she began to clean and treat the blister. It had ruptured and she had been unable to stop and cushion it, so her shoe had continued rubbing the skin until it was more of a jagged cut than a simple blister. She was going to need that Tylenol.

Shippo perched on the arm of the couch while she tended herself. His sharp green eyes were narrowed in distaste.

"Why'd you do that to yourself?" he asked.

Kagome glanced up at him in surprise before returning her attention to her wound. "I didn't do it to myself, Shippo. My shoe did it to me."

"Hmph. You chose to wear the shoes," he said petulantly.

Kagome bit her lips to keep from smiling. "You're right. It's my own fault. Is there a Band-Aid in there?"

Shippo's attitude dropped immediately and he was rummaging noisily through the kit, tossing out one of every kind of bandage he could find.

Kagome picked a standard Band-Aid and stuck it on over the antibacterial cream she'd applied.

"Where's Kaede?" she asked, popping the pills he'd brought her into her mouth and washing them down with the chilly water.

"She went to deliver some of the tins we put together yesterday. She's taking the ones that go to all her friends alone so that I don't have to have my cheeks pinched at every door."

Laughing, Kagome gingerly put her feet down, glancing around the living room. There were still a few stacks of tins to be delivered. "Where do all of these go, then?"

"To the other permanent residents," Shippo said. "You know, all of us who are always right where we've always been."

"What about that one?" she asked, pointing to the tin that had caught her eyes. Unlike all the other Christmassy tins, the one that sat in a place of honor on the coffee table was an eye-smarting shade of orange, and tied around it was a brilliant yellow ribbon. To top it off, on the lid of the thing perched a bow of cherry red. They were spring-time colors, none of which had anything to do with Christmas, winter, or New Years. The colors settled gently on Kagome's tired eyes, cheering her spirits and causing the corners of her lips to lift.

Shippo's smile answered her own. "It's for Rin-chan. Those are Rin-chan's colors. I packed it special, with all the different shapes of cookies we made- foxes, umbrellas, rabbits, bears, shoes, Christmas trees, and who knows what else. I made sure they were all soft, because Rin-chan doesn't like the crunchy ones. The cakes I put in there are from the one batch of chocolate cake we made yesterday, because Rin-chan likes chocolate cake as much as she likes gingerbread cookies, but doesn't really like gingerbread cake all that much."

Kagome's brows lifted ever so slightly, impressed with her young friend's attentiveness to another child. "So she's your good friend, then? Rin-chan?"

Shippo nodded. "She's the only other kid my age. We go to the same school, but we're not in the same class. Sometimes her dad lets Rin-chan ride with me, and sometimes I ride with her, and we play after school a lot."

Kagome glanced at him sideways and bit her lip. Was she really so pathetic as to pick a kid's brain for information about a guy she found attractive?

Absolutely.

"So you know Sesshoumaru Taisho?"

Shippo winced. "Know him? No way. I'm too scared to talk to him. Rin-chan says he's nice and all, but have you ever _seen_ him? He's like a robot suit of armor or something."

Kagome's face twisted as she considered Shippo's word choice. _Robot armor? Where do little boys come up with this stuff?_ she wondered.

"He looked good enough to me," she muttered, reaching out to finger the red bow.

Shippo was suddenly latched onto her arm dragging her round to face him. His small face was still and serious. "Do you _like_ Taisho-san?" he asked.

Kagome considered denying it for a split second, but the look in Shippo's eyes told her he already had her pegged.

"When did you grow to be so perceptive?" she groused, leaning back into the couch cushions.

"Probably during all that time you were away," he replied, his voice light and honest.

Kagome winced, wondering if a bit of bitterness might not have been easier to handle. All he was doing was telling her the truth, which he seemed to be perfectly resigned to.

"I'm sorry, Shippo…" she started.

"So you do like him?" he cut in.

She was tempted to pursue the subject of her chronic absence, but he clearly seemed to want to avoid it. Someday, she promised herself, but just not today.

"I've only met him once."

"So? My dad always said he loved mum right from the beginning."

"That's different."

"I don't see how."

"You're eight."

"And a half!"

"My point stands."

Shippo stuck his tongue out at her and Kagome had to laugh.

"Do you really like him, though?"

Kagome was silent, asking herself the same question and genuinely considering the answer.

"He… has my attention," she said finally, her face arranged into a delicate frown, the little crease between her brows telling of uncertainty and self consciousness.

"Does he know that?" asked Shippo.

At a loss for words, Kagome shook her head.

"…Are you certain you're only eight and a half?"

-end chapter-


	5. The Meeting

**AN****: **The FRUSTRATION. It's killing me. This was a terrible idea. Also, it will NOT be finished by tonight. It may not even be finished by _next _Christmas. Ah well. Still, Sesshoumaru returns. Not how it was supposed to go, but whatever. I do promise, though, no take backs, that it'll be in chapter 6 that they have a second real conversation.

With all my insane devotion,

Sable

* * *

The Meeting

Kagome lifted the slumbering boy off of her lap, laying him gently on the couch and replacing her body heat with the poor substitute of a thick red afghan. Careful not to dislodge her Band-Aid, she slipped her pumps back onto her feet, gritted her teeth as the aching appendages protested painfully.

She stood gingerly, slipping into her long, plum colored pea coat, which she and Shippo had discarded on the floor before their lunch of apple juice and turkey sandwiches. She walked as quietly as she could to the door, stepping lightly mostly so as not to disturb Shippo, but also to test the boundaries of her injured foot. So long as she didn't have to run or jump off of anything, she thought she'd be fine. The down time, Tylenol, and sustenance had greatly improved her outlook on things, and after three hours time with her smallest friend, she felt prepared to go and face the big wigs her boss was meeting with- including Sesshoumaru Taisho.

She grabbed her purse and scribbled a swift note of explanation to Shippo, giving him her word that she would visit again tomorrow. Leaving the note on the entryway table, she slipped out of the warm and sweet smelling sanctuary and locked the door firmly behind her.

She found that if she balanced all of her weight on the balls of her feet, as if she were walking on her tip toes, even when standing, that the blister would not rub. If she was clever, she could manipulate her movements so that her good foot took most of her weight most of the time. As the elevator dropped, she just hoped Naraku wasn't in a mood to walk fast.

She picked up several other passengers on the way down.

Somewhere around floor 35, a middle aged man slipped into the lift. She impassively ignored his rudely lingering gaze, choosing to employ the cold, distant stare that she had been encouraged to cultivate in Naraku's employee. It was a face she hated to wear, but one that Naraku lauded, and it was remarkably useful for discouraging unwanted advances. The only person it didn't seem to work on was Kouga. The middle aged man kept his hands to himself, if not his eyes.

Further down they picked up a mother carrying a baby, and Kagome couldn't help the warm smile that slid over her face. The woman returned the smile and they went on their way.

In the teens, the elevator stopped and the doors opened on a face that Kagome recognized.

"Kagome!" crowed the handsome young man, stepping into the lift with his hands held out in greeting. At his exuberant advance, the middle aged man edged back into a corner, looking disgruntled, and the young woman held her baby out of the way.

"Miroku," Kagome said, surprised. She met his reaching hands with her own, grasping them in an act of self preservation and holding them tight enough that he couldn't get them free.

"I had heard Naraku-san was going to be here, but I forgot to call and see if you were. Are you heading to the three o'clock?" he asked, skipping his trademark charming smile and putting on his genuine, goofy grin. Miroku had learnt long, long ago that he'd never get anywhere by putting on a show for Kagome Higurashi, and had since given up trying to make her yet another notch on his bedpost.

She felt him trying to pull his hands out of hers and tightened her grip, because regardless of the state of their friendship, Miroku Hoshi would _always_ go for a feel.

"I am," she told him, pulling him out of the way of the closing elevator doors. Her old friend, apparently realizing that his hands weren't going to get their chance, crowded bodily into her personal space.

"We'll go together, then," he said cheerfully. "How have you been since the last time I saw you? October, was it?"

"Yes, at Osaka. I believe you got drunk, stole my boss's date, punched him in the face, and wound up passed out in my room. Come to think of it, why are _you_ going to the three o'clock at all?" she questioned, shooting him a skeptical look. "I'm pretty sure Naraku banned you from his presence."

Her question was met with a smug smirk as the elevator halted on the ground floor. Miroku draped an arm over her shoulder, leading her out of the elevator and across the lobby. From the corner of her eye, Kagome briefly caught a flash of brown on the magnificent tree. Her heart fluttered.

Miroku lowered his head so that he could speak softly, his lips very near her ear. "I'm no longer subject to the whims of one such as Onigumo Naraku," he told her, his voice triumphant.

"Been moving up?" she asked him from the corner of her mouth, her eyes wry as she surveyed the people they passed through. Miroku's tight arm around her shoulders made it easier to balance on her sore foot. They crossed the lobby quickly and made their way to one of the hallways that led away from it. Miroku, apparently, knew where he was going, so Kagome was happy to let him lead.

Miroku's laugh was so exultant that that Kagome couldn't help but look up at him. His eyes, blue violet, were sparkling with his success, and the smile on his face made him almost devastatingly handsome. Kagome smiled back up at him, uncertain of the cause but delighted by the effect.

"Indeed I have been. After my performance in Osaka, I was actually fired. My company didn't want to be on Naraku's bad side anymore than he already was. But when I came to Tokyo, an extremely high profile firm actually contacted me. We do a lot of business with White Dog, so now I might as well be working for Sesshoumaru Taisho himself."

Kagome could only laugh at the irony as they arrived in front of conference room number three.

"Do you have to wait on that cretin you call master?" asked Miroku, finally stepping away.

Kagome was just about to reply when a cold voice spoke up from the behind them.

"The _cretin_ she serves is right here, Hoshi."

Kagome spun around at the sound of her employer's voice. "Naraku-san!" she said, wincing at the guilty squeak in her voice.

Miroku rounded more slowly, his lovely eyes narrowed in contempt. He said nothing, only dropping a friendly hand to Kagome's shoulder before turning away to enter the conference room.

Naraku stared at Kagome, shadows of anger flaring behind his eyes. She ducked her head and awaited his rebuke.

It never came. Instead, Naraku brushed past her and bit out an order to follow him.

She did as she was told, ducking into the room behind him, nearly being clipped by the heavy door she had expected him to hold open.

The room was half full of milling individuals. Their silence crafted a heavy, subdued atmosphere. Kagome kept her steps in tandem with Naraku's as he went to a chair at the very end of the long, rectangular table. Kagome was interested to note that he did not sit at the head of the table. She sat carefully in the chair next to him, noting that Miroku was getting a cup of coffee from a table in the corner.

Kagome pulled a notebook and pen out of her purse, followed by a datebook, a PDA, and her own cell phone. Naraku's bony hands came into view, handing her his cellular as well. She disabled both of their ringers and slipped the two of them into her purse.

As she prepped her materials, she noticed Naraku tapping agitatedly against the table top.

"Would you like a cup of coffee, Naraku-san?" she asked, reaching out to tap one of her fingers against his wrist. His fingers stilled, but the sneer he shot her made her snatch her hand back. "Taking that as a no, then," she said, picking her pen back up to test it against the pad of paper.

She could practically hear Naraku's teeth grinding. She glanced up and found Miroku's eye on her.

_What's his problem?_ mouthed her old friend.

She offered a half-shrug, shaking her head only a little bit so as not to attract the attention of the man beside her. She turned back to her task, mulling over her boss's rotten mood. It seemed his day had only gotten worse since his conversation with her that morning, and he was taking it out on her. As terrible as he was being now, she felt bad to hold it against him. Everyone has those days. Naraku just had more than his fair share.

As the hour hand inched closer and closer to the three, the people in the room slowly trickled into their seats. When Miroku took the seat across from Naraku, Kagome wondered if he wasn't being difficult on purpose.

The exact moment of three o'clock saw every person present for the meeting seated very properly, each of them silent and straight of back, each of them patiently waiting. Awaiting what, though, Kagome couldn't be sure.

Until the door of the conference room swung open once more and in walked the very man Kagome had been waiting to meet.

Sesshoumaru Taisho strode confidently through the room, his long legs making short progress of its length. When he passed by, she though she saw his golden hazel eyes linger on her just a bit longer than was necessary. He claimed the seat on the other side of Naraku.

And so, the meeting commenced.

-end chapter-


	6. The Man

**AN:** This story has eaten my soul. At least you got to really experience some Sesshoumaru in this chapter. I make no promises about what comes next.

Thanks to Vamp Winter for the consistent reviews. I really appreciate them. Reviews make the inspiration easier to come by.

-Sable

* * *

The Man

Kagome glanced around, carefully checking every bench and shadowed tree trunk. The park was empty.

With a grateful sigh, Kagome allowed her ramrod spine to curve. Her shoulders, sore from being held at an unnatural but elegant slope, rolled alternatively, working out the kinks that came from such a 'classy' posture. As she leaned back into the bench, she kicked the torture shoes off of her badly abused feet.

"Damn Naraku, anyway," she muttered, pulling her jacket tighter around her but allowing the freezing air to numb her legs and feet, and especially her toes. Appearances were important to her boss. Far, far more important, she suspected, than her own or any of his other employees' well-being.

If she were being honest with herself, she could admit that her job was beginning to become detrimental to her health. When she had first started, her job had been fine, fun, and satisfying. She'd been allowed to wear sensible clothing, been allowed to practice casual Friday, been allowed to smile at business partners.

Looking back, she could vaguely track the progression of Naraku's application of pressure, but she'd been clueless when it started. Somehow he'd gone from a few disparaging remarks about her hair to outright telling her to never wear just lip gloss to a meeting again, without her even noticing.

In such a manner, he had come to control nearly every aspect of her life. And somehow, she'd let him.

As she sat there, bathed in the yellow glow of a streetlight and staring blankly up at the ducky, smog obscured sky, she felt a warm, delicate tingle work its way from the backs of her ears, round to her cheeks, down her neck, and right through her chest, to settle somewhere deep in her gut. Her body gave an involuntary shiver and she sat up and turned around, knowing undoubtedly that someone's eyes were fixed on her.

"I do not believe that extreme physical duress is a condition of your contract with Onigumo Naraku."

Her heart gave a good show of bucking around like an angry wild boar, wreaking havoc on her ribcage and terrorizing her poor lungs.

"Taisho-san," she said, immediately disapproving of the airy, lilting way it escaped her lips.

He approached through the dark, coming towards her from far off the beaten path. Odd, she thought, but not alarming. His long pewter braid draped heavily over one shoulder, showing starkly against the black of his trench coat. In the shadows of twilight the man seemed washed of color, a living portrait of blacks, whites, and multitude shades of grey. Only his eyes shone color: a vibrant golden orange; living embers in a world of ash.

Her heart rattled in her chest, jolting her out of the entranced focus she had had on him.

"What…are you doing?" she asked slowly, still craned around on the bench, staring at him.

"Walking through a park, seeing a business associate, and stopping to speak with her," he explained manifestly. His tone was soft and familiar, a far cry from the cold, monotonous inflection he had demonstrated in the conference room.

Kagome felt her cheeks flush as he rounded the bench to stand in front of her. "I suppose I meant to ask what you're doing out here instead of at the dinner _you_ are paying for," she amended. This time, she managed to keep her voice even, composed, and even a bit teasing.

He gestured to the empty space on the bench beside her, a question displayed in the miniscule lift of a single pale brow. The bench felt suddenly very much too small to Kagome.

"By all means," she said, feeling faint.

His was an overwhelming presence, but Kagome felt warmed by it. Their shoulders brushed as he situated himself elegantly on the hard metal slats. He kept his hands tucked into his pockets so that when he had stopped shifted his elbow rested gently against hers.

Kagome twisted her neck to stare up at him, but his sedate countenance remained looking straight ahead.

"I suppose," he said eventually, "for a reason similar to your own."

A smile flickered across Kagome's face. "The blister you got from hiking up three flights of stairs in stilettos had begun to bleed and your boss would have killed you if your wound had distracted his affluent companions from himself?"

The man's lips quirked, a smile that effectively dispelled the shadows cast by the sharp plains of his face. She stared up at him, delighted by the difference it made to his countenance. With the smallest hint of a smile, his face was drastically transformed; his lines softened, his eyes warmed, and his looks became nothing short of magnificent.

'Handsome' was such a shallow, pale word for the man. He was a purely masculine beauty, one which could not be rivaled by anything in Kagome's experience. And for all his loveliness, there was something deeper, some indefinable trait that drew her, inexorably, closer and closer to him. She had met him now a total of three times, but she knew that there would be no slackening in the intensity of her interest.

"Not those same circumstances," he conceded, entirely oblivious of her overwhelmed state. "I was, as I hazard to guess you were, weary of our companions and eager for an atmosphere of less significant hazard and more honest motives."

Kagome nodded, understanding immediately. "Even eleemosynary efforts are often tainted by ostentatious, self centered greed."

She saw a flash of fire- his eyes dancing to her and away again so swiftly that she almost didn't see it.

"I would also hazard to guess that you are not so very fond of your… how did Hoshi put it- master?"

Kagome bit her lips, remembering the way Miroku had hounded Naraku, subtly but effectively, all throughout the three hour long meeting.

"And was I correct?" he continued. She uttered a confused inquiry, and he elaborated, "About your contract."

She laughed out loud, the noise crackling merrily through the abandoned park. "You were correct. I am not required by law to wound myself so, but I am…encouraged to adhere to my _employer's_ preferences." She narrowed her eyes challengingly, directing them straight ahead to mirror his pose. "And with all due respect, Taisho-san, I have no master."

"You may call me Sesshoumaru."

She jerked her head back to him, eyes wide. He wore a smirk and did not look at her.

"Yes, Sesshoumaru-san. You can call me Kagome."

"Just Sesshoumaru… Kagome."

She flushed, jerking her eyes away from him as he looked towards her, pressing her lips together to keep them from folding into too large of a grin. The way he spoke her name was so close to a physical caress that Kagome had goose bumps. She found it suddenly very easy to imagine that he too felt the draw that so badly influenced her. Glee bubbled up in her throat, so she was immensely proud of the steadiness of her voice when she spoke.

"Alright, Sesshoumaru."

He uttered a satisfied "hn" and fell silent. She followed suit, enjoying the companionship and the warm fizz it created right beneath her skin.

Some time passed and the cold on Kagome's bare feet grew uncomfortable. She leaned forward to slip her shoes back on.

"I should head back to the hotel," she told him, her reluctance bleeding into her voice.

He stood swiftly and she was presented, once more, with his hand. This time she did not hesitate to place her own in it, and when he had helped her to her feet, he tucked the hand he held into the crook of his elbow.

They walked together back to the hotel. The heat of Sesshoumaru's body soaked into Kagome's side, encouraging her to lean into him. From the way he slowed his walk, he didn't mind.

As they walked, Kagome's mind flew back to their first meeting and all she had learned since. They were quickly within view of the White Dog, for the park they had taken refuge in was only a block and from the hotel.

"The little girl who made the reindeer- her name is Rin-chan," she said, tilting her head to look up at him.

He glanced down at her, golden eyes sparkling. "It is."

"My friend Shippo-kun is friends with her. He and his nanny have made her a lovely cookie tin for Christmas. I think he'll be delivering it tomorrow, and I'm considering going with him," she said, deciding not to reveal that she knew the parameters of his relationship with the girl.

"Shippo Delacroix?" he asked, surprise coloring his voice. "You are friends with the little French boy?"

"French-Japanese," she corrected firmly.

He nodded, lips twitching. "You should go with him to meet Rin-chan. I believe she would be fond of you."

Kagome glanced away from him, because she wouldn't have been able to screw up the courage to ask what she next did if she had been looking him in the eye.

"Is it important that Rin-chan like me, Sesshoumaru?" she asked, keeping her voice light even as she asked the question that could crush or encourage her hope, depending on its answer.

Sesshoumaru's steps slowed to a stop and he turned to face her. Her hand slipped out of his elbow, but she didn't have time to be disappointed before he raised his hand to brush the backs of his fingers over her cheek.

"Very much so," he said, his voice pitched lower and sweeter than she really knew how to interpret.

He ushered her inside the hotel lobby with a hand on her back. Neither of them noticed the furious russet eyes that watched from the other side of the street.


	7. The Girl

**AN: **Sorry this chapter was late. I had a busy day yesterday, but thankfully this chapter was easy to write, so I could get it out this morning.

**_THANK YOU_** to all you guys who reviewed.

_Illico_: Thanks so much! I'm glad you like it that much and I can ensure that there will be more. :)

_SilentQuill23_: I'm glad it's not weird to be writing a Christmas fic after the season is technically over, and I'm glad you're still interested in reading it. Also, I'm excited to see where it's going, too, seeing as how these characters are pretty much making their own way without any regard for my plans anymore!

_Vamp Winter_: Haha! You bet he is, on both accounts! I'm glad you liked that word, it's one I'd recently discovered and was delighted to get to actually use.

_Jeweled Fairy_: I'm really glad you read my story, too. :) I'm delighted that you're finding my characterisations so enjoyable. Thanks for the flattering and insightful review, it really boosted my spirits.

Also, everyone, I may take a quick break from this story to try and update on _Matters of Instinct_. Poor thing's been languishing in neglect, and it needs my attention badly. It shouldn't be too long of a break, though, if I'm lucky. Until next time!

Much love,

Sabs

* * *

The Girl

Kagome made a valiant effort to focus on Shippo's uninhibited ramblings as floors dinged past, but the only thing she could really focus on was the glowing button upon which the numbers 5 and 8 were inscribed in black.

Shippo clung to her hand as he chattered but didn't seem to notice the sweat that slicked her palm. Shifting in spot, Kagome dropped his hand for a second to rub her own against her jeans, smiling down at the boy in apology.

He didn't seem to mind, moving instead to wrap both hands around the brilliantly colored cookie tin he held. "You're going to love Rin-chan," he was saying.

Kagome smiled, her eyes flickered back to the elevator buttons for a brief moment before returning to her small friend. "I'm sure I will," she told him, hoping silently that the little girl would like her, too.

By the time they had reached the 50th floor, every other passenger had disembarked, leaving Shippo free to do and say as he liked. Kagome leaned back against the elevator wall, watching as he gleefully pushed half of the buttons for the lower floors, making the image of robot out of the glowing dots.

"I'll call him Floor 49," said the boy, indicating the floor that was level with the robots head.

"I hope nobody gets on after us," she muttered, standing up at the elevator dinged for 56.

Shippo just giggled, and when the doors slid open, he shot through them like a rocket, taking off down the long, unmarked hallway. Following him more sedately, Kagome saw that the hallway stretched the entire length of the floor and had only one door on each side. Mentally calling up the design of the building, she registered that because the elevator was directly in the center and at the back of the main tower, then this hallway would be splitting the floor directly in two.

Sparing a second to wonder what a child could possibly do with half of an entire floor, Kagome stopped right in front of the door on the right side of the hallway, on which Shippo was energetically pounding.

"Maybe I should ring the doorbell?" she suggested, pointing at the button that was far out of Shippo's reach.

"Nah, Rin-chan'll hear," Shippo said, redoubling his efforts against the door. "Rin-chaaaan!" he called.

Before Kagome could scold him for yelling, there was a scrabbling sound from the other side of the door, and a voice, bright and childishly feminine, called Shippo's name.

The door swung open to reveal a grinning little girl, who Kagome smiled back at automatically. Her hair was long, matte black, and tied halfway up in a sideways ponytail that was cute, even if it wasn't really doing much to keep her hair out of her face. Her eyes were large, dark brown, and delighted, sparkling with the light that only a happy child can possess. She wore a long blue skirt and a blouse in electrifying yellow. Paired with the two were green penny loafers and tall white socks.

In short, she was exactly what Kagome had expected.

Before the girl could wonder who Shippo's companion was, the boy was presenting the cookie tin.

"Merry Christmas!" he crowed, holding the bright package out with both hands.

Rin's awed face made Shippo's split in two with the widest grin Kagome had ever seen.

"It's _beautiful!_" said the little girl, taking the bundle of color into her own hands.

"There are cookies inside, Rin-chan!"

The girl giggled. "Thank you, Shippo-kun."

Kagome, bemused with the two, registered Shippo's blush and covered her mouth to hide her smile. The movement brought two pairs of brown eyes to her, and Shippo rushed to cover for his lack of manners.

"Rin-chan, do you remember how I told you about my best friend, Kagome?"

Rin nodded swiftly, her eyes wide as she stared up at the woman.

"This is her! Rin-chan, meet Kagome. Kagome, meet Rin-chan." The little boy smiled gleefully as two of the most important facets of his life collided gently.

Kagome kneeled to put herself on Rin's level, glad that she'd chosen to wear simple and comfortable jeans and shoes. The girl was still wide eyed and silent, her mouth hanging slightly agape as she took in the stranger.

"It's nice to meet you, Rin-chan," said Kagome. When Rin only nodded, she went on, feeling a bubble of anticipated rejection rise through her. "I was looking at the Christmas tree in the lobby, and I saw a lovely little reindeer hanging just right about at your eye level. A man told me that you made it, and I asked Shippo to let me come with him to deliver your Christmas present so that I could meet the person who made that little ornament. It _was_ you, wasn't it?"

She thought for a moment that her speech had fallen on deaf ears, but the girl presently closed her mouth and nodded her head. Shippo stood off to the side, watching interestedly.

Kagome smiled in what she hoped was a friendly, unthreatening manner, confused as to why the girl had clammed up so thoroughly. Was it just shyness or did she have some kind of instinctual dislike towards Kagome?

"Well, I just wanted to thank you for putting it there. It reminded me of home and helped me feel a bit better about this Christmas. It made me happy. So, thank you a lot, Rin-chan."

Slowly, the girl's lips stretched into a brilliant smile. "You are welcome, Kagome-sama!" She reached out and offered her hand, which Kagome immediately grasped and shook lightly. The little bowed over their clasped hands and from her crouch, Kagome ducked her head in response, remembering how the girl's father had done exactly the same.

She lifted her head just in time to see Rin deliver Shippo a marvelous scowl. "You never said she was _beautiful_!"

Kagome was so shocked at the indignant girl's outburst and her young friend's bewildered green eyes that she burst out laughing, falling backwards out of her crouch and onto her butt.

There was a flurry of activity as the children scurried around her, checking to be sure she was okay and encouraging her to her feet, giggling with her all the while.

Rin led Kagome through her home, she and Shippo talking and moving a mile a minute to show Kagome all there was to see. When they finally settled, it was in a large, fashionably furnished living room, where Rin made Shippo sit with his hands covering his eyes while she ran out of the room. When she returned, it was with a mass of kitten print wrapping paper held together by about fifty feet of masking tape. Kagome figured there was probably a gift somewhere in there.

Rin placed the bundle on the coffee table in front of Shippo and told him he could open his eyes.

"Merry Christmas!" she said heartily, standing with her hands behind her back.

Shippo grinned and launched himself at the package, calling out his thanks. Curious to see what it was, Kagome crowded closer to the children as Shippo tore trough the tape and paper.

When he pulled out a pair of socks, he giggled gleefully, holding them up to show Kagome that Rin had chosen his favorite color (emerald green) and hisanimal (little white embroidered foxes running around the ankles).

He thanked Rin profusely, causing the little girl to blush bashfully, and the two of them drug Kagome off to play, one wearing a cherry red bow clipped to her hair and the other going shoeless in emerald green socks.

Sometime about an hour into their chaotic play, Kagome felt her cell phone begin to vibrate against her leg.

Checking it, she found a text from Naraku.

She excused herself from the children, grateful for the respite from being the badly distressed princess in the tower, to read and answer it. Listening to their rambunctious activities, she stood in the living room and pulled up the message.

_Where the hell are you?_ he snapped. The digital lettering even looked angry.

_Playing with some kids, enjoying the day off you gave me,_ she sent back.

Before she could even take two steps back towards the children, he had replied.

_I changed my mind. Get your ass back here and get dressed up. I'm having lunch with an old friend and I want you there._

_You gave me today off. I'm not going to lunch with you,_ she texted rapidly, a sick feeling growing in the pit of her stomach.

_I changed my mind. I need you, _he sent.

She sighed, but the sound of Shippo and Rin calling for her made up her mind.

_No you don't. I'm staying here_, she typed, bobbing her head firmly as she hit the send button.

His reply took a longer time coming than the ones before it, long enough for the two kids to come looking for her.

When he finally texted her back, he said just one curt word. _Fine._

-end chapter-


	8. The Woman

**AN:** Here's a slight difference in perspective for you guys, and a bit of the past is revealed. :) This story is still quite a ways from being done, and I'm going to have to slow down on writing when my Christmas break is over, but it's so much fun to write that I think it's going to be something I can keep doing when I'm not too swamped with school.

ChaoticRevere: Thanks so much for reading! I'm glad you liked it. The reindeer is inspired by all the times my sister and I made ornaments for our tree. Looking back at them every season, I can see that they were embarassingly sloppy and really kind of silly looking, but mom always insisted on hanging them on her otherwise perfect trees. Those trees are some of my fondest memories. :)

SilentQuill23: Bahaha! I know I sure don't have that courage! I may be a hopeless pushover, but Kagome's getting her spunk back. ;)

Vamp Winter: I bet you're right. ;) He's such a buttface.

AmericaBlessGod: Thanks! I'm glad you reviewed. :) Merry Christmas to you, as well.

Thanks, guys.

Much love,

-Sable

* * *

The Woman

None of the occupants of the room noticed the scrape of a key unlocking a door. Neither did they register the presence of another in their midst.

Sesshoumaru Taisho gazed bemusedly upon the three persons who cuddled in his couch. The woman sat up straight, her head fallen back at what had to have been an uncomfortable angle, her mouth slightly opened, her eyes closed peacefully. Her bare feet rested on his coffee table, but as he caught sight of the fresh Band-Aid on her heel, he couldn't find it within himself to be displeased. The little French boy – French-Japanese, he remembered with a smile – was curled under the woman's left arm, his hand fisted in her t-shirt. His own child was similarly positioned on the woman's right, her head cushioned on Kagome's lap, her hair tangled in Kagome's fingers.

Deftly, he untangled Rin from her new friend. The girl shifted only a little, but the woman's eyes snapped open immediately. He watched as the surprise played out across her face, followed swiftly by a bright blush and dawning comprehension. She released the slumbering girl, shifting her hold on the boy so that he would not be disturbed.

Sesshoumaru gathered his daughter up and left the room with swift, steady steps. After tucking her into her bed, he returned to find Kagome standing over the boy, tucking the blanket that had been draped over the back of the couch up around his neck and down around his sides.

He watched her for a second, struck by the domesticity of the situation he had found himself in. Her curling black hair tumbled sloppily over one shoulder, partially obscuring the cheerful dancing snowmen that decorated the chest of her black shirt. Her grey eyes, so blank and empty when she was at her boss's side, were alive with tenderness when she bent down to touch her lips lightly to the boy's head.

He found, rather to his own surprise, that the woman before him in plain jeans and a silly shirt was almost preferable to the professional, highly made-up woman whom he had first met.

She offered him a sheepish smile when she straightened back up.

With a jerk of his head, he led her into the spacious kitchen that still smelled faintly of that bacon that Rin had probably had for breakfast.

"It is early yet for a nap," he said, gesturing to the clock on the wall that was busily ticking its way through the noon hour.

"We played hard this morning," she told him, standing awkwardly in the middle of the room.

Amusement sparkling in his eyes, he turned to the cabinet near the refrigerator. "Sit. Would you like some tea?"

He heard the smile in her voice when she said, "Sure!"

They were both silent as he moved efficiently around the kitchen. Slowly, the scent of peppermint filled the air. When he turned back to her with two cups in his hands, she was sitting patiently at the table, her eyes riveted on his form. They darted up to meet his gaze and he could feel the nervousness rolling off of her in waves.

"I can see that Rin is comfortable with your presence," he said, placing her tea on the table and sliding into the chair beside hers.

Kagome nodded, holding her steam up so that the steam would waft up into her nose. "She's a sweetheart," she said, her voice colored with fondness for the girl.

"I believe so."

Kagome hesitated, opening her mouth and closing it with a self-conscious flick of her eyes. He waited patiently for her to gather to courage she needed to speak.

"I was told that you adopted her," she said swiftly, taking a sip of her tea immediately after.

Sesshoumaru nodded easily, restraining a smile that probably would have embarrassed her. She'd been doing her homework, and he found it endearing.

"When she was young, she somehow managed to wind up on the street. I have no way of knowing her background, for she remembers none of it. When I picked her up, she became attached to me- and I to her."

Kagome stared blankly at the tabletop for a long moment before lifting the cup to her lips again, trying not to think of the trauma the sweet little girl must have experienced. After swallowing the mouthful, she looked back up at him. He was struck by the weight of the compassion in her gaze.

"How could anyone leave a kid like her on her own?"

He shrugged. "It is possible that her family died and she ran away or was lost. With the amount of searching I did for her real family, I suspect that that is not the case, but it is possible."

Kagome shook her head angrily, taking another sip to keep from bursting into a tirade about how children ought to be treated and what sort of punishment should be dealt to those who mistreat them.

"And what of you? How did you meet Shippo Delacroix?"

She was impressed with his perfect pronunciation of the foreign surname. "I'm his godmother. I was very close to Ariel and Christian Delacroix."

He titled his head, surprise shaping on his face. "How did you become friends with those two?"

She smiled, her eyes lost in the past. "Quite by accident, really. I met Ariel while I was still in high school, back when all she was doing was the occasional commercial. She would go sit in the park by my family's home all alone when Christian was working. Over the years, they became two of my dearest friends. When they…" here she glanced over her shoulder, checking to see that Shippo had not awoken. Seeing that he slept on, she continued. "When they were killed, I helped convince Shippo's uncle to let him stay here with his nurse."

Sesshoumaru nodded. When the child of the famous movie star couple had come to live as a permanent resident in his hotel, he had been briefed by the uncle's assistant on the basic situation.

"The boy must have been badly traumatized."

Kagome nodded sadly. "It was a long time before I saw him smile again. Recently, he's gotten so much better. I'm beginning to suspect that might be, in part, Rin-chan's influence."

Sesshoumaru took a deep sip of his own tea. "They are good together, certainly."

"How much time do you get to spend with her?" she asked.

"As much as I can. I try not to go for a day without seeing her."

Kagome swirled the last of her tea in the bottom of her mug. "I often wish I had more time to spend with Shippo."

Sesshoumaru tilted his head. "You are not happy with your current position. It would not be hard to find a new one. Why do you stay?"

Kagome stared into her cup, brow furrowed in concentration. "I don't know. Once upon a time, it was because Naraku-san needed me and treated me well, and because I got to meet all sorts of interesting people, but now I can't think of a single reason to stay."

"Perhaps, then, it is time to find something new."

She drained the last of her tea, her eyes thoughtful. "Perhaps," she mumbled.

He held his hand out for the empty mug and when she handed it to him, their fingers brushed. Both stilled. Fire-golden eyes crashed with ash-grey. Her fingers trembled slightly beneath his. Without even registering what he was doing, Sesshoumaru extended his other hand to cup her smooth cheek.

Her breath caught in her throat and he leaned forward, suddenly very interested in the pink lips she held slightly parted. She leaned forward, drawn to him magnetically, straining upwards from the edge of her chair.

"Kagome?" asked a muddled, sleepy voice. "Where'd you go?"

The woman jumped out of her chair and away from the man, a blush spreading over her face. "I'm in here, Shippo," she called softly, decisively _not_ looking at the man she had been seconds away from kissing.

Sesshoumaru turned away from her to deposit their mugs in the sink, a pleased smile turning up the edges of his lips.

-end chapter-


	9. The Card

**AN:** Yesterday some bouzo hit a powerline and drug it a quarter of a mile. He didn't seem to notice, either. So we had no power. Ten seconds ago as I was trying to post this, the tornado alarm went off and my entire freaked out and starting screaming at me- the only person with a computer- to go to weather dot com then go get ready for the advent of the storm. Due to slow internet connection, I got yelled at A LOT.

Now that we've decided the storm isn't going to hit us (if I don't show back up in a few days, I'm dead), I'm updating this chapter! Hooray!

REVIEWS ARE AT THE BOTTOM!

Love,

Sable

* * *

The Card

The water was so hot that her skin had turned a brilliant shade of lobster red. Happily, she sunk to her lips, submerging her entire body and only excluding her nose because of the necessity of air.

The large bathroom in her hotel room came with a full bath, which she had not yet had the pleasure of sampling. When she'd dropped Shippo off back at his rooms after they had had lunch with Sesshoumaru and Rin (as it turned out, Sesshoumaru was an interestingly competent cook), Kaede had had taken one look at the shadows under her eyes and pressed a packet of bath salts into her hands. Kagome knew how to graciously take a hint.

The lavender and chamomile steam poured into her nose, assisting the hot water in coaxing her tired, stressed body towards a state of boneless relaxation. She had chosen not to play any music, instead turning off the lights so that she soaked in a bubble of warm, dark silence.

Her mind flowed from thought to thought, freed by the calming environment and the deep, meditative breathing techniques that had learned in college from, of all people, Miroku Hoshi.

Abruptly, her mind focused on the text she had finally gathered the courage to send him as she was reentering her rooms.

_Will you DISCRETELY spread the word that I may be looking for a new job?_ she'd asked him.

His response had been immediate, featuring none of the smug commentary she'd expected. _Naraku won't hear a word of it._

She had thanked her old friend and he had replied that it was the least he could do. After that, she had gone straight to her laptop to compose a draft of her two weeks notice.

As the afternoon had progressed, she had felt more and more clearly that Sesshoumaru was right about it being time to move on. She was unhappy, and it was within her power to break away from the source of her displeasure. The more she thought about it, the more certain she became.

By the time she had left Sesshoumaru and Rin, she had been determined that she would turn in her resignation by the New Year.

It had felt good, writing that letter. She didn't know how Naraku was going to take it, but it was finally beginning to sink in that that much, at least, wasn't going to be her problem for much longer.

Sesshoumaru's words had opened her to the possibility, triggering the process that had led to her decision.

Kagome's mind turned down a new path, recalling the way he had looked at her in his kitchen. She'd never felt anything like that.

Sure, she'd dated before. She'd had meaningful relationships. She'd been in love. But she had never, never been affected so strongly by a man.

She'd thought for sure he was going to kiss her, but she didn't really know how she felt about that. She wanted it, wanted it so bad that it startled her. Despite know that she could count on one hand the number of times she had met him, she felt as if she known him for years.

It was entirely insensible, and maybe even a little dangerous. Though she was loath to admit it, she knew the reluctant and uncertainty growing her stomach grew from fear.

Intelligent women did _not _fall in love at the blink of an eye- even if that eye burned like the midsummer sun. Reliable relationships took time and effort. Fairy tale romances did not exist!

All the same, she had _really_ wanted that kiss.

With a sigh, Kagome sat up, pulling her knees to her chest and resting her forehead on them.

What Shippo'd said about his parents had been true. Christian and Ariel had told her the story many times. The both of them had been staying in Paris, Ariel with her grandfather for the summer and Christian all alone, busy shooting the movie that would boost his fame from simply national to worldwide. They'd met in a laundromat. According to Christian, he'd known immediately that the tall, lovely ginger at the corner machine was going to be his wife. According to Ariel, she'd been a little harder to convince. Christian had spent the summer romancing her, contriving to prove his love. When the summer ended, Ariel went back home to the countryside. When his film was completed, Christian followed her. Ariel had graduated at the end of that year. Christian, who had never missed a weekend at Ariel's parent's little farmhouse, proposed to her at her graduation ceremony. Without skipping a beat, Ariel had said, "Well, I thought that was rather obvious by now…" and the two had been married the following spring. When one of Christian's rolls had brought them to Tokyo, they'd just never left.

It had sounded like a shoujo manga, and Kagome had never thought too much about it. If she had, she'd have just chalked it up to Christian himself. The handsome actor had been a passionate, hopeless romantic, and paired with the honestly and loyalty that was intrinsic to his nature, it had been only reasonable that he should fall in love just the once.

Objectively, Kagome would say that Sesshoumaru probably didn't share many emotional traits with Christian. No matter how infatuated she was with him, even she had noticed the cool reserve he treated most of the world with.

One of the greatest signs she'd seen that he returned her interest was the fact that he showed her more than that icy, uncaring, and sometimes cruel mask. That wasn't who he was, but it was who he wanted his enemies, and even his allies to think he was. It warmed her to think that he wanted her to be privy to the truth.

Kagome made a frustrated noise and pushed herself to her feet, reaching to flick the lights back on. Her peaceful bath had been completely overwhelmed by thoughts of the grey haired man.

"Why am I even obsessing over this so much?" she groused to herself, pulling her towel off the counter and wrapping it around her. "He's old and grey and completely out of my league anyway."

She tried not to think about how his hair was not, in fact, grey, and how his vitality had felt far different from any old man's when he had been staring at her over her empty tea cup.

Willing the thoughts away, Kagome stalked out of her bathroom, heading to the robe she had laid across her bead. After drying her body, she slipped her arms through the robe and grabbed a pair of comfortable, sensible panties that just so happened to be Christmas green decorated with embroidered sprigs of mistletoe.

She was just slipping into them when a knock sounded from her door.

"Uh, just a minute!" she called, tripping as she jerked the cloth up and falling on her bed. Bouncing back and feeling silly, she wrapped her robe tight around her body and ran to the door, belting it as she went.

When she looked through the peephole, she found Naraku's russet eyes gazing straight into hers. Slightly unnerved, she unlocked the door and opened it.

"Excuse me my state of undress," she said, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot. "I just got out of the bath."

His expression was angry, but as he stood in the doorway of her room, his eyes swept lazily down the length of her body. Her smile turned nervous as his expression took a turn for the predatory.

"Not a problem, Kagome," he said, his voice silky as he stepped into the room. She backed up quickly to keep him from coming chest to chest with her. He closed the door behind him and held his hand up.

In it he held a cream-colored envelope, which she could see had not yet been opened.

"This is your invitation to the White Dog's annual winter charity ball."

Kagome's jaw dropped and she immediately forgot about Naraku's uncomfortably suggestive manner. "A ball?" she asked incredulously as she reached out for the card.

"I find the idea remarkably pretentious, myself, but it is also a good opportunity for me. As members of Taisho's little charity endeavor this year, we've been invited. All the other guests will be paying out the nose to attend, and all the profits go back to Taisho's noble thingy."

Kagome scowled at the tone of his voice, but she had already known he didn't care about the charity for its own sake- he was only in this to spread his name and better his connections. She held her tongue, knowing a reprimand would do no good, and slid a fingernail under the envelope's sealed flap.

"So we're going to go socialize. Don't bother bringing a date, we'll just go together. Use the company card for the dress and don't cut any corners. No cheap rags at this shindig, Kagome."

She nodded briefly, staring at the white card she'd pulled out. The lettering was bright crimson, detailing the time, purpose, and location of the event. In the bottom right hand corner, a silver dog stood rampant, its fur tossing wildly about its body, its maw gaping ferociously, detailed with sharp canines. Kagome gave in to the impulsion to stroke her thumb over the dog.

In front of her, Naraku made a strange, strangled noise, jerking Kagome's focus back to him. Her eyes widened when she saw the fury in his eyes and the way his fists clenched. She stepped back instinctively, learning for the first time what it felt like to be the focus of one of Naraku's rages.

"Breakfast tomorrow at seven o'clock. Don't you dare be late," he hissed, his eyes riveted on her.

She nodded weakly, flinching when he threw the door open and slammed it shut behind him.

She shakily slipped the deadbolt into place and turned to go revise her two weeks notice.

-end chapter-

* * *

_Vamp Winter_: So do I. I don't think a terribly talkative Sesshoumaru is good in any representation of him, as it just doesn't seem to fit. Reticence happens to work really well in this story, so I'm glad. Thank you for your consistent reviews, they make my plot bunnies happy.

_AmericaBlessGod_: -blush- Thank you, thank you. :D What makes writing this story even more enjoyable is the folks like you who review so tell me how much _you_ are enjoying it. Thanks a bushel, and may God bless you and yours and deliver you safe into the new year.

_casedeputy_: "Bwahahahaha!" is the noise I made when I read your comment. ;)


	10. The Deal

**AN****: **I was really, really sick when I wrote this, so if anybody sees anything that just doesn't make sense, make sure to mention it to me, please. Thanks, guys. Review replies are at the bottom again.

-Sable

PS - By the way, I lived. Others didn't. That's just how it is with storms where I live.

* * *

The Deal

Kagome popped a dainty triangle of syrup-drenched pancake into her mouth, sweeping her eyes over her breakfasting companions.

Across from her, a woman her own age sat staring blankly out the window, fiddling with the handle of her fork. She'd propped her elbow on the table and propped her chin up in her hand, and didn't seem to be paying even a little attention to the rest of their party.

Kagome shook her head and smiled, because Sango Takenaka _never_ presented anything less than a reserved, professional persona… unless she was bored out of her mind. The chocolate-eyed lawyer was one of Kagome's oldest and closest friends. They'd gone to the same high school and then to the same college and now enjoyed the privilege of working in two circles that often lapped over one another.

Beside her, Naraku was listening quietly, rather sullenly, so the conversation going on about exchange rates. It had started thirty minutes ago and had gotten progressively duller and more pointless as the hour progressed.

On Naraku's other side was the businessman Sango had been invited to the breakfast by, an American named Rochester, whom Kagome didn't know at all. Across from Rochester was Miyoga Fujimoto.

Fujimoto was another associate of Sesshoumaru's, rumored to be an old family friend, as well. So when the older man showed up with none other than Miroku Hoshi, Naraku had had no choice but to grin and bear it, being far too small a player to risk offending a man who had the ear of one of the biggest.

And so Miroku, fully aware of and probably having orchestrated the situation, had claimed the seat directly across from her silently seething boss, and had spent a few minutes completely monopolizing both Kagome's and Fujimoto's attention.

Things took a turn for the worse when Rochester strolled through the door of the restaurant laughing loudly, his blond hair sprinkled with loose snowflakes and his foreign handsomeness accented by the flush the cold had brought to his cheeks, with none other than Sango Takenaka on his arm.

Miroku had clammed up immediately, his jaw going slack and his eyes glazing over. Amid the stir caused by Rochester's arrival, Miroku's react was lost on both Naraku and Fujimoto, but Kagome could never have missed it.

A big commotion had been made over the fact that the three of them had been in college together and now all worked within the same arenas. Rochester had graciously denied Fujimoto's offer to move so that he could sit across from Sango, insisting that the two women should sit close together so as to be allowed to catch up.

Kagome did not neglect to notice the way Miroku's jaw clenched as the American drew out the empty chair beside him and ushered Sango politely into it.

Kagome watched sadly as Miroku tried to act calm and happy while sitting at the same table as his unrequited love and the man who seemed to be her latest flame, but she could see the sorrow in his dark blue eyes, could see the pain that drew his skin tight over his face. Sango didn't seem to notice.

After a while, Miroku had seemed to get over it, or at least lock the emotions away deep within his heart, and endeavored to engage himself in the conversation going on around him. Kagome found his efforts highly admirable, for the topic was surely boring him out of his mind.

With a sigh, Kagome swallowed her last bite of pancake and took a sip of her orange juice. Carefully, so as not to bruise, she tapped Sango's calf with the pointy toe of her shoe.

The woman's eyes darted immediately to Kagome, and she struggled not to laugh at the eager hopefulness in them. If Miroku wasn't bored to death, Kagome could guarantee that Sango was.

"Gentlemen," she said out loud, placing her hand on Naraku's elbow to call his attention to her, "if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go freshen up a bit. Sango, would you like to come?"

Sango practically jumped out of her chair, smiling belatedly at their company and taking off for the bathroom before Kagome had even pushed her chair in. The men laughed and went on talking, and Kagome shot Miroku a sympathetic smile, which she knew he didn't see for being too busy staring after Sango.

When she joined Sango in the bathroom, the other woman swept her into a warm hug.

"Kags! I was so surprised to see you and Miroku; I just couldn't get over my good luck- until Fujimoto and Andrew started droning on. I didn't even know you were in Tokyo, or else I'd have called. How are you?" she asked. "And don't give me that 'I'm doing good' bull, because I saw the way you hesitated when I asked you out at the table. I want to know everything."

Kagome sighed as she released her, moving to stand in front of the mirror and check the state of her trim grey pantsuit.

"Well, to be honest, I'm preparing to leave Naraku-san's employment."

Sango blinked, looking stunned. "That's… surprising."

Kagome left off tugging at her seams and turned, narrowing her eyes at her friend. "Why is it so surprising? People change jobs all the time."

Sango's eyebrows were furrowed as she surveyed the woman in front of her, her warm eyes worried. "Kagome, there's a rumor going round that you two are engaged."

Kagome's jaw dropped. "You're kidding me."

Sango shook her head. In shock, Kagome leaned against the counter.

"But that's just… that's just…"

"Preposterous?"

Kagome nodded wordlessly and Sango's face immediately smoothed.

"That's exactly what I thought, and the sheer impossibility of it made me decide not to call you up ranting about how you hadn't told me you were engaged yet."

Kagome just shook her head, unable to speak. Another woman walked into the bathroom, smiled at them, and retreated to a stall. Sango lowered her voice.

"I've only heard it within these last few weeks, if it helps. Not from anybody in particular, just through the grapevine, you know?"

Kagome nodded, pressing a hand to her face. "I wonder if _he's_ heard this rumor."

The strange foreboding in Kagome's tone made Sango tilt her head to the side. "He who? You don't mean Naraku, do you?"

Kagome heaved a long-suffering sigh but smiled up at her friend. "I am _so_ glad you're here."

Sango, befuddled by her friend's sudden and uncharacteristic change of topic, just nodded and smiled back.

"Listen, Sango, are you going to the ball at the White Dog on Christmas Eve?"

"Yes, with Andrew."

"The American? Sango, are you and he-?"

Sango blushed and shook her head. "Just friends."

Kagome bit her lip, thinking of Miroku, and pushed herself off of the bathroom counter, brushed out any wrinkles that might have clung to her trousers.

"I have to go get a dress today after breakfast. Will you come shopping with me?" her voice took a wheedling effect and Sango's face looked stricken.

"Kagome, I _hate_ shopping."

"But you do it."

"When I have to!"

"Do _you_ have a dress yet?"

"Well…no…"

"Then that that!" crowed Kagome triumphantly, taking hold of Sango's arm and steering her towards the bathroom door.

They exited the lavatory and Kagome dropped Sango's arm, so as not to look too reminiscent of the teenage girls they used to be. However, before they had reached the table, Sango's hand darted out and wrapped around Kagome's wrist.

Curious, Kagome turned to see two very serious brown eyes locked onto her face.

"I will go shopping with you," Sango said softly, "if you promise to tell me what's _really_ going on with you. Everything."

Kagome smiled to herself, having forgotten how perceptive her very closest friend could be. It would be nice to share everything with the one person she knew she could trust above any other.

"It's a deal," she promised.

After a moment of searching Kagome's face, Sango turned, satisfied, and led the way back to their table.

-end chapter-

* * *

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

Vamp Winter: I absolutely agree. ;)

casedeputy: So would I!

Waffle-Love: Thanks for reading, and thanks for the reviews. I hated making poor Kagome wait, but I had to. :( Soon, though, soon.

AmericaBlessGod: We figure the driver had a trailer. It looked like he'd gone a little off the road when he caught the line, and it's hard to tell if you're dragging something when you go off the beaten pack with a trailer. And yes, the ball is going to be one heck of a party!

Thanks for reviewing, everybody!


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